The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1887-08-04
QUEER ENVIRONMENTS.
Some Novel Ways of Earning Daily
Bread.
Special correspondence

lDpeCluI OOIIeSpuuucuSc'I
New YORK, July 81 have written be-
fore of the queer ways of earning liveli-
hood in this city. A celebrated literary
woman has said: "There issomething in New
York for everybody within it to do if they
can only find it." Aye, if they can only find
it.. One serious drawback is they often starve
to death before they find it. The wise find it
because they make it. They never would
find it if they went into the overflow chan
nels of industry where all others go. Our work
and fortune, like our happiness are within
ourselves. They who look within to see what
they are capable of doing, or what they can
do that nobody else is doing, instead of hunt
ing without for chance to do something that
everybody else is doing, will succeed. This
is what starts new business, new inventions,
new productions.
A little boy earns his living by picking up
the oats dropped by the horses of tho mail
wagons when they eat. Every day at noon
he can be seen providing about the north side
of the postoffice, with bag On his arm and
a little shovel in his hand When horse has
finished his meal the boy scrapes up the oats,
shovels them into his bag and sells them to
man who keeps pigeons. Even in this humble
and peculiarly original occupation he has
competition. The sparrows swoop down upon
his precious merchandise before he can pick
it all up, and he and they have it nip and
tuck every day.
There are men who keep hotels for house.
hold pets, for dogs and birds and cats. Only
the other day heard of lady who pays $27
month for parrots board. There are also
"pet feeders" They have regular list Of
houses to which they go daily and look after
the we'll being of fishes and other creatures in
the aquarium, the birds and all the rest Of
the helpless captives Women who dress
dolls sometimes earn enough to live quite
comfortably. know teacher in the public
schools who, knowing that there is an end to
everything, even to situation, determined
to make herself independent Of school boards,
She decided that something to really beautify
or preserve the beauty Of womankind was
| most likely to flourish without decline, so
she decided on treating the hair scientifically.
To this end she took up the study of the hair and
scalp. and now has out a conspicuous single
on busy thoroughfare, announcing herself
as n capillingist. And as for custom, she gets
4 IT, and gets more all the time. In the sum-
mer she goes to Newport and treats the hair
Of the rich at good round figure and comes
back with $500 in hcr purse. But she draws
the line Oh men. A California bonanza man
offered her 500 to treat his head just once,
md she weEld not do it. From a business
point of view this is drawing a fine distinc.
tion. since she could train young man as an
assistant and gather in the California gold il
she would:
Che old woman sells court plaster in the
down town Offices She gets her entire Gus
tom from men. They like to be prepared fol
black eve or cut finger emergencies. A good
looking young Turk sells Turkish candy il
ths down town districts. Here and there G
amender" may be found. He is generally al
elderly person with a genius for tinkering
He repairs everything, from the wheel of {
nlancbette to the ornament on the top of &
parasol. Some women mend clothes, but it il
difficult to find them. OF course there arr
dozens of street merchants who sci
diminutiye bears and balloons and cottor
flannel elephants. Inventors of chill
dren,s toys sometimes do well. Lace clean
ers and fan members keep tolerably busy
: Whoever hits upon doing some necessar,
thing and doing it well, will get on. On
Great trouble everywhere is inefiiciency
MANY attempt to do what they cannot d.
well Tn the humble employments in thi
; citv ineflciency is the rule rather than tn
orcenfion. G.. G.